‘Filmmaking is a passion. It’s what I want to do with my career,’ said 23-year-old Ryan James Yezak. By James Montgomery Lady Gaga in “Telephone” Photo: Interscope It’s been called the “Citizen Kane” of “Telephone” tribute videos (OK, so we were the ones who called it that, but that doesn’t make it any less true), a rollicking four-plus minutes of over-the-top costumes and choreography, supremely dedicated performances and bargain-bin special effects. But the man responsible for the greatest Lady Gaga vid not actually made by Lady Gaga is still waiting for his big break. Like, he’s waiting even as you read this. “I actually just came from a job interview,” 23-year-old director Ryan James Yezak said, laughing. “It’s a pretty entry-level position, so I didn’t bring up the Gaga video I did. They didn’t know who I was either.” Yet, that could all change. At the time of this writing, Yezak’s “Telephone” video has been viewed more than 3 million times, and thanks to Gaga’s recently released clip, he’s getting more views by the minute. Yezak hopes to turn the attention into some paying gigs (he’s got tons of ideas for music videos), and while nothing has happened just yet, he feels like fame is tantalizingly close. At last. “Filmmaking is a passion. It’s what I want to do with my career. I feel like nobody will let me do it yet,” he said. “[This video] has definitely opened a few doors though. I feel like doors are cracking open. None have actually opened, but they’re starting to crack. I know lots of people have seen it. Perez [Hilton] tweeted it directly to Lady Gaga, so I’m assuming she’s seen it too. I’d love to hear from her. It would be incredible.” Shot over one very long day in January — “the same week Gaga shot her video,” Yezak enthused — in and around Kansas (mostly Lawrence and Kansas City), Yezak employed a team of his friends to make the video. Actor Scott Nelson turns in the performance of a lifetime as Gaga, and Julian Riviera plays Beyonc
